


City of Lost Souls oneshot

by iszy_chan



Category: Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare
Genre: Angst, Coffee, Cuddling & Snuggling, Domestic, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Sleepy Alec, cuddling to the extreme, simon cameo bc he is my aesthetic, sort of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-10
Updated: 2014-03-10
Packaged: 2018-01-15 07:19:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1296274
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iszy_chan/pseuds/iszy_chan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"When Simon came into Magnus's apartment, it was quiet. There was a fire flickering in the grate, and Magnus sat in front of it on an over-stuffed sofa, his feet up on the coffee table. Alec was asleep, his head in Magnus's lap, and Magnus was twirling strands of Alec's black hair between his fingers. The warlock's gaze, on the flames, was remote and distant, as if he were looking back into the past. Simon couldn't help but remember what Magnus had said to him once, about living forever: </p><p>"Someday you and I will be the only two left."</p><p>Simon shuddered, and Magnus looked up.</p><p>Alec hadn't remembered when he fell asleep, but he was pulled back into consciousness by Magnus's voice speaking softly above him. "Isabelle called you over, I know." The warlock's slender fingers were gently tugging at Alec's hair, as if he were twirling strands of his hair between his fingers. "She's down the hall that way - the first bedroom on the left."</p><p>A continued scene from City of Lost Souls</p>
            </blockquote>





	City of Lost Souls oneshot

_When Simon came into Magnus's apartment, it was quiet. There was a fire flickering in the grate, and Magnus sat in front of it on an over-stuffed sofa, his feet up on the coffee table. Alec was asleep, his head in Magnus's lap, and Magnus was twirling strands of Alec's black hair between his fingers. The warlock's gaze, on the flames, was remote and distant, as if he were looking back into the past. Simon couldn't help but remember what Magnus had said to him once, about living forever:_

_"Someday you and I will be the only two left."_

_Simon shuddered, and Magnus looked up._

_Alec hadn't remembered when he fell asleep, but he was pulled back into consciousness by Magnus's voice speaking softly above him. "Isabelle called you over, I know." The warlock's slender fingers were gently tugging at Alec's hair, as if he were twirling strands of his hair between his fingers. "She's down the hall that way - the first bedroom on the left."_

 

 

Alec let his eyes lazily flutter open, just catching the dark crimson of Simon's hoodie as he disappeared down the unlit hall. Magnus's hands stilled in Alec's hair, and he felt the warlock's green cat eyes focus on him. "Alec?"

Alec turned his face to the side, feeling the soft fabric of Magnus's silk pyjama pants against his cheek where his head was in his lap. "I fell asleep?" he mumbled, raising his hands to his face to rub his eyes. 

"Yes, as expected. It _is_ after four in the morning."

Alec frowned, letting his hands fall against his face. "Then what's Simon doing here?"

"He came to see Isabelle. I'm guessing she left him a note." There was a distant tone to Magnus's voice, and when Alec drew his hands away from his face to look at him, his gaze, on the blue-white flames of the low fire in the grate, was also distant.

"Magnus," Alec said softly, but his gaze didn't break away from the fire. Alec caught his partner's hands, still resting lightly on his hair. " _Magnus_."

"Mhm?"

"Look at me."

Magnus finally broke his gaze away from the flames, looking down at Alec. 

"What's wrong?"

Magnus shrugged, his mascaraed eyes half-lidded. "Nothing. I am just tired."

"Then why let me sleep and not fall asleep yourself?" Alec didn't mean to make his reply cold, but he was still tired, and having Magnus not giving him the truth was wearing away at his temper. 

"I was just thinking - nothing more. Go back to sleep, Alec. It's still early in the morning."

Alec fought against the drowsiness that slowly crept through his whole body. "Why don't you? You haven't been sleeping for days, and the last time I nearly got you to come to bed, I woke in the morning with you not even coming to the bed to sleep."

Magnus moved under Alec's head, and he felt him tense. "I've just been so caught up with those runes, Alec, and now with everyone here, taking up my guest rooms and begging for me to create a portal, it's quite a handful of tasks to keep under control."

"Oh, I'm sure you've had worse," Alec shot back coldly. "Or were the things you did for Will just out of kindness towards him?"

Magnus straightened up on the over-stuffed sofa, his eyes widening. "How do you know-"

"I looked at some of the paper on your desk," Alec said, feeling slightly guilty.  _No_ , he told himself sternly.  _Magnus should have told me_.

Magnus's hands dropped from Alec's head, and he straightened up, leaning against the back of the sofa beside Magnus. "Alexander! You looked through my notes?" 

"Not all of them. And most of the ones I read were just equations I couldn't read. But there was one, about summoning a demon, dated back to the 1800s. You wrote this whole section about Will, and his story about the fake curse he had when he was a child." Alec stared down at his hands, tracing his thumbs against the faint scars across his knuckles. "You didn't tell me his surname was Herondale."

 "There are many things I haven't told you, Alexander. And I was hoping this wasn't one of them." The pupils of Magnus's eyes slitted in fury, and he folded his arms across his chest. "I can't believe you. Why on earth would you go through my  _notes_?"

 "I wanted to know more about Will, and seeing as you rarely talk about him when I ask, I decided to go find out."

"By looking through my  _notes_?" Magnus rose to his feet, walking with a cat-like grace to the fireplace, where he leant against the mantelpiece with one arm. Alec could see the lines of tension across his back through the silk pyjama top he wore, and blue sparks flicked from his fingertips as he flexed his fists. "I can't believe you sometimes, Alexander. You know I don't want people looking through my notes, but you still looked through them, just to know about William?"

"He was a Herondale," Alec repeated. "Like Jace. And he married a half-demon, half-Shadowhunter girl. Doesn't that mean that Jace has demon blood in his veins?"

"I don't know," Magnus answered, lowering his head to gaze at the flames, his back to Alec. "But I don't want to talk about this either. You shouldn't have gone through my notes, when I specifically said-"

"Don't scold me like a child," Alec cut in, rising to his feet. His tiredness had completely vanished, replaced with burning anger. "I'm not a child, Magnus!"

"Well, maybe if you stopped nagging for information like a child, I wouldn't have to treat you like one!" Magnus yelled, hitting his fist against the wooden mantelpiece so blue sparks flared from his clenched fist. 

"I'm your partner! I deserve to know these things!" Alec yelled back, and briefly realising that the others were sleeping, he lowered his voice. "I just want to know about Will. You talk about him so much, and I just want to know what I'm up against."

"You're not up against anyone, Alec," Magnus said softly, the flames dancing in his eyes as he glanced over his shoulder at him. "You know it is only you."

"But you've been alive for so long. I don't want to be like some passing fad for you."

"We've had this discussion," Magnus said, a hint of boredom in his voice. "You know I'll never love anyone else but you."

"But that just makes me feel worse, to know that when I die, you'll have no one to be with."

 "So, you don't want me to love you and then move on when you go, but you also don't want me to be alone when you do die?" Magnus said, his voice cracking when he said  _die_. Alec refused to answer, folding his hands together instead. With a sigh, Magnus turned back to the fire. "Look, Alec, if you must know, I never had a relationship with Will. Like you said, he married a half-Shadowhunter, half-demon girl. I just... felt like I had a debt to pay him."

"Why?"

Magnus shook his head, his un-styled black hair flopping in front of his eyes. Alec itched to step to his side and brush his hair out of his eyes, but now was not the time. Not when he was so close to actually knowing about Will. "No. Not now, Alec."

His anger got the better of him. Alec turned his back to Magnus, catching his leather jacket off the back of the sofa he had previously been sitting on. He felt Magnus's eyes on him as he shrugged it on. 

"Where are you going?"

"To find someone who will tell me about Will."

"Woosley's dead," Magnus mumbled.

 Alec turned to him. "Who?"

 Magnus looked up, as if not realising he had spoken. "No one."

Alec threw up his hands. "By the Angel- this is what I mean! You mumble someone's name, and when I ask, you never tell me about them. I'm going to find someone who can tell me about Will, and while I'm at it, Woosley too." Alec pulled on his boots that had been kicked onto the floor beside the sofa. "I'm going to find Camille." He turned to the front door, taking two long strides to it. 

He heard Magnus take in a harsh breath, and just as Alec's hand touched the doorknob, a hand hit the door, stopping it from opening. "Wait, Alec." Magnus's face was inches from his, and Alec saw the rare look of worry in Magnus's eyes. 

" _What_?"

"Don't go to Camille. She won't tell you everything, and if she did, she would expect something in return. I don't want you risking that. Please."

"Then tell me."

Magnus looked away from Alec, but his hand remained on the door. "Will was important to me, just like Woosley, but I can't tell you right now. You'll just have to trust me."

"I do trust you," Alec said softly. "But I just want to know about them. It feels like your never completely here, and a part of you is somewhere else, in a different dimension. I just want all of you to be here, Magnus. I want to love all of you, not just the part I get to see in the mornings, or the part I get to see when we get coffee together."

Magnus nodded slowly, but firmly. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I want to make you happy, but I can't do that by telling you about them. Can it wait for another time?"

Alec sighed; his anger had boiled down, and like before, he was now weak and tired. "You said that last time. I just don't want this to be like a wheel."

Magnus nodded. "It won't be, I promise. Just... stay."

Alec dragged a hand through his hair. Magnus could be so frustrating sometimes, with all of his secrets. But Alec also loved him, and he wasn't just going to walk out. Slowly, he nodded. "Okay. I'll stay."

Magnus's hand dropped from the door, a smile lighting his face. Alec couldn't help but grin back at his boyfriend as he hooked his arm around his waist and pulled him close to him. "Thank you," Magnus mumbled, and Alec leant forward, brushing his lips across Magnus's. Just as Alec was about to pull back, Magnus caught his lips, deepening their kiss. Magnus's arms slid up Alec's back and under his leather jacket, tracing circles along the small of his back. "You know," Magnus mumbled, "you'll get hot if you plan on keeping this on." He tugged at the back of the jacket lightly, and Alec felt him smiling against his own lips. 

"I am actually pretty hot," Alec mumbled back, shrugging the leather jacket off in one swift movement and tossing it behind him. 

Magnus chuckled. "Yes, you are." He pulled Alec closer, and Magnus hit the door with his back, Alec pressed against him. Their bodies, one muscular and tall, the other lean and equally as tall, fit together perfectly, like puzzle pieces. All his life, Alec had felt like he didn't fit with any other piece, but with Magnus, they both fit together as if they were crafted as one piece. 

Alec felt Magnus's hands creep up his back to his neck, where his long fingers gently stroked the dark hairs on the nape of Alec's neck, making him shiver. In return, he slid his hands down Magnus's back, knotting his fingers in the soft silk of his pajama top. 

"If you rip these, I'll kill you," Magnus mumbled against Alec's lips. "I got them in Egypt."

"Black silk pajamas? What have they got to do with Egypt?"

Magnus smiled. "There was a man there, who told me that if I married his daughter, he would give me this pair of pajamas."

Alec pulled away slightly to look at Magnus. "So you agreed?"

"No." Magnus grinned. "I lied and said I would agree, so he gave me the pajamas, went to find his daughter for me, and I took off."

Alec grinned. "Sounded like fun." He closed the space that had been slowly expanding between them, and pressed his lips against Magnus's. 

An uncomfortable cough from the hall broke them apart, and panic shot through Alec - Isabelle hadn't seen them, had she? She'd tease him for days about silk pajamas and-

It was Simon, standing with his hands stuffed in his pockets. "Sorry to interrupt," he said, his eyes flickering from Magnus to Alec. "I was just wondering if I could get some coffee."

Alec released Magnus, and he slid away from the door, walking to the kitchen counter where the coffee machine stood. Alec trailed behind him, and as soon as Magnus had stopped by the machine, he hugged Magnus's arm protectively. Alec wouldn't let Magnus slip away without sleep again. Not this time. Not when the dark shadows under his eyes were nearly as dark as his eyeliner.

"Isabelle not proving as good as you'd hoped?" Magnus asked Simon, waving his hand to make a mug rise from the draining board and land by the coffee maker. 

Simon laughed, making his way to the kitchen counter. "She's asleep. I thought I'd let her sleep, and seeing as I can't get to sleep-" he gestured down to the machine, humming quietly as it made the coffee. "-coffee is the only answer."

"Isn't coffee the answer to everything to you?" Magnus asked sceptically, shrugging off Alec - who still clung to him like a limpet - so he could drape his arm around the boy's shoulders. "Or was that Jace?"

"Does he even like coffee? Besides, it's nice," said Simon in his defence. "I like coffee, considering it's practically the only thing I can drink besides blood." He folded his arms across his chest, leaning his elbows against the counter. "Anyway, why are you making coffee? Can't you just wave your hand or something?"

Magnus shrugged. "Alec is trying to get me to use my coffee maker more. He is forcing me to use it whenever people want coffee."

Alec grinned. "I just thought it was better than stealing coffee from a shop."

Magnus rolled his eyes. "You sound like Clary." With a small hissing noise, the coffee poured into the mug, and he handed it to Simon. 

Simon curled his long, pale fingers around the mug, as if he could absorb its heat - which, Alec knew, he couldn't actually do. "Thanks. So…" he trailed off, looking down at his mug. "How's it going?"

"Bored, Simon?" Alec asked. 

He shrugged. "I've had better mornings."

Exhaustion washed over Alec like warmth through his veins, and with a sigh, he leant his forehead against Magnus's shoulder, letting his eyes close. "I know how you feel."

He heard Simon chuckle, and a second later, Magnus's soft lips were brushing against Alec's forehead. He opened his eyes slightly, to find that Simon had gone, presumably back to Isabelle's room. Magnus was still beside him, his head leaning against his partner's. 

"Tired?" Alec mumbled into his shoulder. 

Magnus grunted softly in reply. "We could go to bed, if you want."

"To sleep," Alec clarified, to his own disappointment. "I'm too tired for anything else."

"I wasn't insinuating anything else, Alexander." He could hear the slight tease in Magnus's voice without having to look at him. The warlock's arm slid around his waist, supporting his weight, something Alec knew he wouldn't be able to fully support much longer. "Come on. I think we could both do with some sleep."

Alec let Magnus gently pull him across the living room, Magnus snapping his fingers to end the blue-white fire. As they slowly made their way down the hall, he turned off lights, and after what seemed like an hour, they finally reached their bedroom, Magnus nudging the door open with the tip of his bare foot. Alec collapsed onto the bed, Magnus's arm slipping free from around him. The warlock slid under the covers, removing his pyjama top, showing no signs of exhaustion apart from the dark shadows still hanging under his green-yellow cat eyes. Alec, pulling off his black shirt and jeans, crept under the covers beside him. He naturally moved closer to Magnus, and he draped a bare arm around him. 

But even now, with Magnus's arm around him, Alec couldn't get to sleep. After so many nights of having to watch Magnus stay awake, his back to everyone, crouched over his piles of paper with runes and different types of pentagrams scrawled across them, the moment finally came when Alec could sleep knowing that Magnus was beside him, also in full health and sleeping. 

"I won't go," Magnus reassured him, as if hearing his thoughts. "You're tense, as if ready to leap at me if I try to go." 

"I just don't want to wake up with you in a different room, having gone another night without sleep." Alec rolled over so he faced Magnus, who gazed back at him with luminous eyes. 

"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I didn't know I was worrying you so much. I promise I'll sleep." He moved closer to Alec, his hand sliding down Alec's back. 

"Thanks," Alec whispered back, naturally leaning closer to him so his head was against the warlock's shoulder. He looked down at Magnus's hand, lying palm-up on the mattress, before reaching over and curling his fingers around his. Magnus planted a kiss on his forehead, before his eyes fluttered shut. 

Alec watched him for a moment; the way his chest rose and fell methodically, the way his mascaraed eyelashes brushed against his cheekbones, the way his lips curled very slightly at the edges, as if he were smiling. For a brief moment, Alec forgot about how tired he was, and just focused on Magnus. 

"Stop staring at me, Alexander," Magnus mumbled, his eyes not opening. "If I sleep, so do you."

Alec smiled, squeezing Magnus's hand. "Fine. If you say so."

They were silent for a moment, and when Alec had thought Magnus had finally fallen asleep, he spoke, quiet. "And Alec."

"Yeah?"

"I love you. Even if you think I still love Will, Woosley or anyone else, you are not just some name added to the list. You are the only one."

Alec sighed, smiling. "I love you too. More than anything."


End file.
